17. “The Dollop,” “239 – Enron”

16. “Uncivil,” “The Soldiers”

15. “Off Book,” “13. Attorney at Love (w/ Nicole Parker)”

14. “Why Oh Why,” “#16: Randy’s Mema Died”

13. “LeVar Burton Reads,” “Episode 5: ‘What It Means When a Man Falls From the Sky’ by Lesley Nneka Arimah”

12. “The Memory Palace,” “Episode 103 (The Rose of Long Island)”

11. “Inside Psycho,” “The Butcher of Plainfield”

10. “Slow Burn,” “Martha”

9. “Mogul,” “Part 4: Gucci Boots”

8. “Awful Grace,” “They Tell Me You are Wicked”

7. “Reply All,” “#102: Long Distance”

6. “Heavyweight,” “Jesse”

5. “Strangers,” “Do You Like My Little Lie?”

4. “Closer Than They Appear,” “How did I get here? (with Mahershala Ali)”

3. “The Butterfly Effect,” “The Yes Ladder”

2. “S-Town,” “Chapter I”

1. “This is Actually Happening,” “#89: What if you spent 15 hours on the edge of sanity?”

This has been an incredible for year for stories within the world of podcasts. The following list merely scratches the surface of the bounty of incredible series that the medium has to offer. We’ve tried to highlight other noteworthy episodes throughout the year, so once you’ve added all our Best Of shows to your feed, check out these others:

Through a complex web of port politics and economic entanglements, Alex Madrigal presents a meticulously reported overview of the shipping world, an area of life that many of us take for granted. With an eye to the future issues that may arise as current trade attitudes are on the verge of a mammoth shift, “Containers” not only outlines how people of disparate continents might be affected, but the direct impact this day-to-day process has on the individuals whose involvement ensures that the world stays connected. Coupled with future episodes that would look at the Bay Area communities impacted by a changing industry, this installment on the people who make this system run is a helpful base for understanding the world at large.

It’s a setup that sounds like the stuff of Urban Legend 101: scores of children falling ill from watching a TV show. Add in the enduring cultural legacy of Pokémon, and you have something that passes “too weird to be true” into its own distinct realm. This episode of “Science Solved It” not only investigates the veracity of this schoolyard tale, but takes a long look at how these kinds of stories are passed around, both in the immediate aftermath and after nearly a generation’s worth of slightly shifting details. Like the show’s episodes about giant moving rocks and city-saving maps, there’s an ultimate explanation — in the end, the fact-finding journey to get to those answers is almost as satisfying.

A weekly audio drama, played out largely over phone calls, “Jules & James” takes the usual conventions and coincidence of a phone number mixup meet-cute and lets two characters’ sense of discovery play out in real time. As Jules and James go through the opening hours of an unexpected friendship, they face the same peaks and valleys of a fresh, cell-phone-based relationship, complete with drifting conversations that go from small talk to big picture and back again. Through this pair, the show can have both the drama of foundational life decisions and the natural rhythms of the week-to-week developments of everyday life.

2017 was a year for a handful of shows that caught fire with a certain level of otherwise casual podcast listeners. While the opening of “Missing Richard Simmons” made our mid-year list, this first chapter of “Dirty John” might be the more enduring fascination of the year. As a multimedia experiment and a modified daily limited run release schedule, the story of John Meehan also became a touchpoint for a year filled stories of manipulative men. The immediacy of the story and the representation of the reporting in audio, print, and web formats helped it become another step in the evolution of podcasts as a valuable element of the modern journalistic landscape.

This first installment of Dylan Marron’s series on engaging with the worst of online feedback is a case study in discourse. As presented, this show isn’t intended as a guidebook for swaying those with opposing opinions or escaping the dangers of online trolldom. But it does offer a pathway for recognizing the common ground of decency that hopefully we all have the capacity for finding. Though this talk often touches on opinions landing on either side of a common conservative/liberal divide, this is proof that there’s still room for meaningful engagement. Marron’s experiences may be more exception than rule, but there’s a glimmer of hope in the tiny bit of reconciliation that he finds.

As we pointed out in our mid-year list when we highlighted the “Bridge of Spies” episode of “Blank Check,” film podcasts are infinitely more entertaining when elevating underappreciated works than when they’re tasked to cut beloved films down a peg or two. Even for a director whose filmography has already been parsed over by the internet frame by frame, #thetwofriends Griffin Newman and David Sims still find a special kind of insight through an appreciation of films that others are quick to dismiss. (For more of what the show does well with guests, try the “A.I.” episode with David Rees and for an added touch of format-induced insanity, there’s always “Inception.”)

As with the other shows in the Night Vale stable, "Within the Wires" has an uncanny ability to create an entirely new world at lightning speed. Trading in the relaxation tapes of Season 1 for an audio tour through a series of dystopic art museums, the show still manages to paint an alternate reality, filled with a certain level of uncertainty and dread even as its soothing soundscape drifts over any listener. Like co-writer Janina Matthewson before her, Rima Te Wiata is a worthy guide through a strange world where mystery, art, and power converge in a wholly unique way.

Imagining futures to better understand our present, “Flash Forward” has tackled a number of potential developments around the globe, from the melting of Arctic ice to the disappearance of bees. But as a thoughtful speculative exercise, Rose Eveleth (who also produced “A Queen of Sorts,” one of the standout installments in ESPN’s new “30 for 30” series) investigates what might happen decades down the road if California were to separate from the US or divide itself up. A thorough examination of how changing statehood would have dramatic effects on so many other areas of life, it’s an example of how “Flash Forward” takes a distinctive big picture view of the big ideas on the horizon.

Laurie Metcalf is in the middle of a much-deserved award season run, but on top of her fantastic turn in “Lady Bird,” she’s just as wonderful in audio form as one of the three leads of this live-read of a pilot that never made it to series. Along with Samantha McIntyre’s “Rollerworld,” these are two of the funniest TV episodes of the year, even though half of each exists only in the listener’s imagination. A send-up of ‘50s domestic roles, complete with period-style TV ads, Raphael and Wilson’s script stars both of them as the other two central characters. Like most of the unproduced pilots featured in the series, this was probably a one-off, but it certainly makes the most of its momentary lifespan.

This year, Karina Longworth added to the rich “You Must Remember This” archives with in-depth series on Hollywood’s “Dead Blondes” and the parallel lives of Jane Fonda and Jean Seberg. (On top of everything, the show even got a loving tribute in “Dear White People.”) As a way into understanding the roots of Hollywood horror movies, Longworth tracked the careers of Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff, taking them from Dracula and Frankenstein’s monster all the way through the projects where their paths intersected. Simmering beneath Lugosi and Karloff’s stories are relevant underpinnings in the industry of today, including the quick cash-grab mentality of franchises and the ever-present tendency to typecast. Couple all of this with a renewed appreciation of the show’s series on Charles Manson, and “You Must Remember This” has plenty of untold and/or forgotten histories ready to uncover.

Diving headfirst into the unknowable corners of human nature, Alix Spiegel and Hanna Rosin find a fascinating approach to answering the fundamental question of why we feel the way we feel. Stretching from the Philippines to your living room, the search for the basic origins and relative strength of the emotions we carry is one that has ramifications for everything from our legal system to our collective dating norms. The show’s findings are packaged in a way that mirrors how the listener processes these ideas, all in a way that helps lead to an understanding of sensations that few (if any) of us will ever truly be able to grasp.

It was only a matter of time before ESPN’s acclaimed documentary series made the leap to audio. On the strength of stories like this, the rise of the two-word phrase that spawned an entire cottage industry, it’s a perfect match. In addition to highlighting some of the recent landmark Yankees/Sawx moments in one of sports’ great rivalries, Julia Lowrie Henderson’s piece looks at how even the simplest business ideas can test loyalties, friendships, and the impulses of a rabid fanbase. Charting the process from a grassroots Boston Red Sox fan movement to a co-opted symbol of bandwagon casual interest, it’s proof that even three simple syllables can still carry with them a compelling origin story.

Produced and co-hosted by Earlonne Woods, Antwan Williams and Nigel Poor, this show about life in San Quentin State Prison and the American prison system overall is a vital account of lived experiences. Shaped in part by Woods and Williams, both currently serving sentences at San Quentin, this episode highlights a specific kind of isolation that solitary confinement carries with it. Bolstered by first-hand accounts from those who’ve spent extended periods of time separated from the rest of population, it’s a necessary means for understanding an idea that’s often talked about in the abstract, but is rarely presented in this way.

This legendary comedy podcast is about as much about U2 as “Animal Farm” is about the intricacies of life in a pigpen. Still, with the band’s recent anniversary tour celebrating a landmark album, it gave Adam Scott Aukerman a chance to head back into the studio for another wild, unmappable ride through the show’s two-year hiatus. As close to unchecked comedy id as you’ll find in the podcast world, it’s the trademark kind of nested diversions and dumb brilliance the show had slowly evolved into, long after shedding any pretense that the U2 discography would be the sole focus of the show. It’s mostly not about them, but it’s the kind of ep that Thedge and Larry Mullen Sr.’s son could be proud of.

Before the 2017 NBA season, Alex Kapelman undertook a mammoth public project: He would either stay a fan of the inept New York Knicks or take his support to a new team. After consulting with fans of all 30 franchises and before announcing his final step in front of a live audience (like a certain someone before him), Kapelman took this episode to hear the argument from Kumanyika (more on his own show in a bit) for giving up rooting for basketball altogether. Though (spoiler alert) Kapelman didn’t end up taking Kumanyika’s advice, this quick conversation about what we get out of investing so much in what we have no control over is the perfect distillation of everything that makes sports fandom so rewarding and frustrating at the same time.

Turns out that one of the year’s most entertaining political stories is about a dog that was born nearly a century ago. Kicking off a series about historical oddities usually reserved for footnotes, “Something True” used its unique style to relate the roller-coaster tale (tail?) of Warren G. Harding’s beloved pup Laddie Boy. It helps reiterate that the sideshow of presidential life is not solely a 21st century invention and that inexplicable Oval Office obsessions existed well before the 24-hour news cycle. With a slight touch of irreverence in Duncan Fyfe’s writing and a joyful delivery from Alex Ashby, history’s curiosities have rarely been presented in such a neat, soothing manner.

There’s something satisfying about audio fiction that can so faithfully reproduce the real world and then slowly chip away at that reality until it becomes something else entirely. Following in the footsteps of last year’s phenomenal “Commentary Track” and the ever-haunting “That’s Democracy!” this episode enlists some help from writer Casper Kelly and terrific performances from Lauren Adams and Peter Grosz to make an ordinary day at the mall become something decidedly different. “The Truth” rarely does tidy wrap-ups (check out “Do the Voice” for another shining example) and the skillful sound design at the close here is certainly no exception.

Notable among this show’s collection of firsthand recollections from life and love: one woman’s reflections on life at the century mark. The simplest evolutions and the societal changes with the most magnitude both come into focus. From the rise of fascism to her part in activism from decades past, it’s a perspective that many people imagine (“What would it be like to live to 100?”) but few get the chance to wrap their heads around.

Of all the comedy podcasts on this list, “All Fantasy Everything” is the one that’s the hardest to pick a single episode. Even if you haven’t thought of who you’d want in your corner if you got into a fight or what you’d do with a billion dollars or the words that you think make you sound smart, you can count on Ian Karmel and Co. to offer up a classic. So instead of picking an episode with an abstract topic or one of the dependable music-related classics (“Band Names,” “Karaoke Jams,” or “TV Theme Songs” either), we’re throwing kosh right into the wind and picking a simple classic. It’s just Karmel, Sean Jordan, and David Gborie assembling the ideal sandwich. Nothing fancy, but it’s one of the most naturally funny trios in the business doing what they do best.

Making philosophical ideas digestible for non-scholars, Barry Lam’s series manages to find real-world applications for the most theoretical of topics. So it makes sense that one of this season’s most entertaining episodes took him on a trip to North Carolina where a number of high school students wrestled with those ideas in real time. Following various teams in the National High School Ethics Bowl, Lam manages to present a wide selection of teams from different school backgrounds, each competing in a judged series of discussions on the ethical implications of guilt and obligation in a number of scenarios. Underdog story and helpful lecture all wrapped up in one story, it’s also a window into how the next generation sees the world.

Like a few other shows on this list, picking one episode of “Revisionist History” almost goes against the idea and power of the show. Together, the 10 episodes of Season 2 work in concert to uncover different ideas of what we reappraise in light of a new year. A fresh way to look at Winston Churchill, golf courses, french fries, and even country music all fall under host Malcolm Gladwell’s renewed scrutiny. But this two-parter about the prosecution and sentencing of one individual in the midst of the civil rights movement is profound connection between past and present, and the ideas we face as a nation today. It’s the justice system under a microscope, with over 60 years of perspective to go along with it.

As late-night royalty in a time when those hosts had enormous cultural sway, Dick Cavett can still hold his own on any number of subjects. But it’s beyond the fame and the glamour of his heyday that he and John Moe find the most fruitful talk, concerning his history of depression and how it manifested itself in ways audiences never knew. Cavett is forthcoming, honest, and unafraid to talk about a period of his life that, in line with the mission statement of Moe’s show, aims to destigmatize mental illness and create a freer dialogue to help discuss treatment and the ability to get help.

So many of Love + Radio episodes boil down to the essence of truth. (It’s what made their episode “Girl of Ivory” our #1 pick for 2016.) Confronting that idea head-on, through the exploits of Doug Williams and his one-man campaign against the official use of the polygraph machine, the show wrestles with lies in an even more literal way. What begins as a definitive perspective from an expert on a crusade slowly morphs into something more elusive, par for the course for a show that continuously questions the assumptions of those speaking and those listening.

Much as it did at the close of last year when the show debuted, “Crimetown” is a reminder that when anyone contends that our current political moment is the most unpredictable in history, all you need do is gesture towards Providence and Buddy Cianci’s 1990 re-election campaign. In a saga beset by ruthless mafia bosses, vindictive individuals inside and outside the establishment and an ever-growing cast of important side characters, the man at the center and his triumphant return marked one of the series’ most improbable chapters. Told with the same omniscient control that made Marc Smerling and Zac Stuart-Pontier such helpful guides through a complex tale, it’s the kind of story that has us excited for FX’s announced plans to turn it into a TV series.

What began the year as an outlet to share some deeply held fandom gradually evolved to a trio of episodes recorded at Abbey Road itself. It’s been interesting to see the show ripple out from the albums themselves and dive deeper into Beatles ephemera. But at its heart, “Screw It” is the best possible version of the “press record and see what happens” kind of podcast, one that’s fueled by a love of a topic so strong, the only thing left to do is gather a bunch of people together and just talk about how great it is. Sometimes that manifests itself in a two-hour conversation about every personal connection to every single Beatles song, sometimes it’s a helpful breakdown of Lennon and McCartney’s respective style. But it rarely gets better than sitting back, listening to “Golden Slumbers” and wondering how anything else in the world can compare.

The sheer volume of extended “Game of Thrones” scholarship is as exciting as it is daunting. This year’s less-than-perfect season brought with it a renewed evaluation of the way that the show relates to the volumes of material that we’ve seen on-screen and the untold mythology that remains confined to the show’s pages. Together, Mallory Rubin and Jason Concepcion digested all of the highs and lows of Season 7, culminating in a finale that not only tackled the mysteries of Westeros and Essos, but argued for the enduring value of fandom. Rare is the show that can make its listeners share the same enthusiasm for the material as its expert hosts, and we’re looking forward to the insights they bring to other cultural institutions.

Another in a long line of beautifully calibrated performances of deeply personal writing, Kerry Bishé’s reading of “One Bouquet” stands out for its simplicity and honesty. Alisha Gorder’s essay about working in a flower shop and helping others process joy, loss or grief comes to life in a way that trusts the experiences that inspired it. Like the essay series overall, it touches on the imperfection of language to express the feelings that we have and the different ways that we try to express the intense emotions we carry around with us. We all process the past and progress into different eras of our lives at various speeds, a truth that plays out here with a quiet understanding.

It’s not impossible for an improv podcast to exist on its own, but add in a little sound design and a running storyline and “Mission to Zyxx” shows that the result can be something pretty special. The serialized spontaneous story of a ragtag group of sci-fi travelers has a wonderful cast of central characters: a neutral everyman, a protocol robot, a wary badass, and even the ship itself. A roving list of guest stars help to bring a fresh layer to each episode as the show bends time and space for its own glorious purposes. (Stick around past the credits and you might just hear proof that sometimes the performers are laughing just as much as the audience is.)

“Nancy” is a show built on acceptance, whether from family members, co-workers, or in the case of this episode, from those within the chain of command. Detailing the organizing of the first military-focused Pride event after the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” becomes a retelling with extra meaning for everyone involved in its planning. As the steps in the process, in line with military protocol, end with a celebratory step forward, it’s also a reminder of what each of those individuals stand to lose as the current administration’s actions threaten to undermine that progress. Along with the prior episode on being trans in the military, “Nancy” gives a loving tribute to the active servicemembers whose personal sacrifice demands this kind of recognition.

Radiolab’s ongoing look at the legacy of major Supreme Court cases unveiled a two-part episode that zeroed in on the personal family history behind two infamous decisions. In considering the lives of plaintiffs Fred Korematsu and Dred Scott, that look extends to their descendants. In the case of Scott, whose appeal to freedom was denied just years before the start of the Civil War, it leads to a story of reconciliation between two families. Through the eyes of Korematsu and his daughter Karen, there’s an acknowledgment of the injuries of the past, but with that comes the faint hope that fresh eyes and open hearts can help us all understand our nation’s history and avoid the injustices of the past.

Through the lens of the legendary Battle of Versailles fashion show in November 1973, Brittany Luse and Eric Eddings look at a time and place when black designers sat atop the fashion world. With stories from those who crafted the clothes that captured international fascination and the models who wore them to prominence, it’s the story of talented people with fresh ideas grabbing the respect that they deserve, even in the face of an industry that treated them as mere participants. Luse re-creates the lead-up to the show with so much joy and vibrancy that you can almost see the runway. Along episodes like those of Stormé DeLarverie, “The Nod” is documenting stories that should be common entries in America’s collective cultural history.

Love never comes without complications, an idea that’s been the driving force behind much of what makes host Lu Olkowski’s series a dynamic look at an elusive idea. This particular episode follows a couple dealing with an unusual medical circumstance, maintaining their love in the face of something that even science can’t quite explain. Paired with one of the show’s best entries of fiction, it’s a pair of perspectives on sacrifice and companionship, just a pair of glimpses in a complex tapestry of our everyday search for connection.

One of the biggest tasks of any live reading event is to embody the spirit of a piece of writing without it seeming like too much of a performance. As we highlighted on our mid-year list, Denis O’Hare’s interpretation of this Jess Walter story gets right to the heart of a scam and what manipulating another person does to the people on the other end of that intent. As always, a quick chat with the author behind the story also serves as an illuminating bookend to the writing process and character work that goes into making a piece like this come to life on the page.

Where to start with this ongoing history/comedy hybrid? For 2017 highlights, “The Dollop” and baseball are usually a dependable match, so the Glenn Burke episode is worth a listen. Catching up with the live shows is always a solid way to get the same laughs from the show with an added audience atmosphere, so we’ll recommend the Worst Supreme Court Judge Eve, too. But when it comes to incremental, flabbergasted outrage, there are few episodes this year that distilled the best parts of Dave Anthony and Gareth Reynolds’ overview of America better than the murky origins and lasting impact of the Enron scandal.

In fresh and thoughtful ways, “Uncivil” shows how thinking of the Civil War as a four-year event from the 1860s is a fundamental misunderstanding of the way that its legacy still reaches into our modern world. Through stories about rebellious publishers and the song that became the unofficial anthem of the Confederacy, hosts Jack Hitt and Chenjerai Kumanyika don’t set out to claim that everything we know about the Civil War is wrong, but there’s plenty to glean from the redacted pages of the history books. This particular installment, detailing one woman’s claim to a part in a Civil War reenactment becomes an interesting look at how we digest history and who we allow to participate in that process.

There are a very select number of people that can do what Jess McKenna and Zach Reino manage on a regular basis, coming up with a continuous stream of award-worthy improvised musicals in any number of styles. Luckily, they’re occasionally joined by performers like Nicole Parker who have both the rhymes and range to keep up. “Attorney at Love” is the show’s usual joyous chaos, a crazy swirl of Michael Buble, astrology, and the nefarious underbelly of the transportation business. Once you get past which characters might actually be an anthropomorphized train, it’s all wrapped up in a plot that, like the best “Off Book” selections, makes just enough sense to follow.

“Why Oh Why” has continued to look at the full scope of the modern dating world, from stories of ghosting to reality TV hopefuls, all the way through a series of live shows that looked at romantic successes and failures specific to cities across the country. But if dating is about “the person you are” fighting with “the person you present to others” — all in the hopes of making a meaningful connection — the show has a textbook case study in Randy, a regular figure continuing to pop up on the show’s periphery. This conclusion of a two-part, year-opening look into the aftermath of a trying time gets right at the heart of why honesty is so elusive and whether it’s worth trying to even look for it in the first place.

One of the most exhilarating entries of “LeVar Burton Reads” is a fascinating short story about Nneoma, a mathematician in the future who works with a world-changing formula to affect the fundamental ways that people experience what’s left of the world. There’s a power in Arimah’s story that plenty of lesser performers would be able to bring out: the overtones of imperialism, the impending sense of global doom, and the faint glimmer of hope that there are still hidden solutions that can help us cope with what’s to come. But as with the stories on this show rooted in fantasy or magical realism, LeVar Burton proves he’s a capable caretaker for those with a passion for short fiction. He brings a tenderness and wonder to his delivery that hasn’t changed since the days he became an icon to a generation of readers. Even when reading tales of grief and woe, there’s still a glimmer of hope in his rhythms that makes even the most difficult stories soothing in their own way.

This dense, compact biography of Julia Gardiner Tyler is the kind of concise overview that “The Memory Palace” continues to excel at, year in and year out. A thoughtful consideration of a woman who faced public condemnation for posing for an advertisement and eventually became one of the country’s most famous faces, Nate DiMeo presents a story of 1839 by focusing on societal pressures and expectations of the day. In true “Memory Palace” fashion, it doesn’t seek to vilify or praise Gardiner, but to present her as a distinctive individual of her day, who both challenged and helped define what it was to be a good wife and a good woman. Using every last bit of its fifteen minutes, it upends the listener’s opinion of this person and the times she lived in, right up until the last parting detail.

2017 has been a busy year for Mark Ramsey, whose twin series “Inside Psycho” and “Inside the Exorcist” both told the stories of iconic horror movies from a slightly different angle. Blending recreated and reimagined conversations with a biographical overview of the authors, actors and filmmakers that brought these stories to the screen, it’s a singular approach to the traditional making-of template. This episode in particular is an ethereal spiral into the mind of the country’s most infamous serial killers. For every minute spent with Ed Gein, it’s no surprise why the public fascination with the darker side of humanity has helped sustain both podcasts and the films that inspired them.

More than a transposed audiobook and far from a oversimplified 2017 allegory, Leon Neyfakh’s journey into the under-covered corners of Watergate is a deeply thoughtful consideration of a saga that seems free of any further surprises. But in looking at the pieces of the impeachment puzzle that history has either taken for granted or forgotten altogether, Neyfakh doesn’t reduce this reevaluation to simple heroes and villains. Instead, chapters like this opening look into the treatment, suppression, and complicated legacy of Martha Mitchell draw connections to the current political climate without a heavy hand.

This six-part series into the life and death of legendary hip-hop producer Chris Lighty is a fascinating, finely-told portrait of a musical movement. In the heart of its impressive blending of biographical and cultural biography, this fourth episode introduces another element to the story that separates it from most public radio-style life overviews. As host Reggie Ossé discovers evidence of domestic abuse that had been previously omitted from many public remembrances of Lighty, Ossé's personal wrestling with this information mirrors the nationwide reckonings of recent months. Figuring out how to honor the complex legacy of friends and colleagues while acknowledging both successes and shortcomings is an honest examination of what it means to truly know the individuals who help shape the entertainment we love.

Chicago-area documentarian Robert Andersson’s creations are haunting pieces of audio verite, capturing the rhythms of a city in the conversations of the people charged with documenting its most tragic stories. As we noted in our mid-year list, 2017’s installments of “Awful Grace” have been an ode to a specific kind of necessary journalism that takes on the emotional burdens of an entire neighborhood and processes them for the public record. This extended essay adds in personal reflection, but the effort is still the same: to preserve the memory of those lost to gun violence, even if it’s in the shadow of their untimely departure.

Some of the strongest 2017 installments of “Reply All” — as reliable a force for quality and compelling stories as you’ll find in the podcast world — centered on danger. The shadowy corners of the internet hide fascinating tales of digital espionage, planned obsolescence, and people who are not who they purport to be. This two-part investigation into the origins and continued life of a classic tech scam takes the team to locations and states of mind far from where they started. So much of the changing digital world is unknowable, but “Reply All” has continuously been able to make that search for answers something incredible.

Jonathan Goldstein’s parade of unexpected reconciliation is built on the realization that everyone deals with the past in different ways. This particular story, about the two people involved in a car accident and their reasons for considering reconnecting years later, speaks to the perplexing human need for closure and how that manifests after time and perspective. The window into Goldstein’s anxieties meld with his subjects in a way that feels true to both show and host. And there’s incredible power in the way that the potential reunion unfolds, all the way down to the way that each person takes their eventual leave. It’s the accidental poetry of life that the best podcasts can capture in multiple dimensions.

Over the course of “Strangers,” Lea Thau has told stories about discovering the remarkable people in our midst and seeing them in a new light. But what happens when a traumatic experience challenges the very foundation of who you are? It’s a reminder that the stories of noir-style intrigue that happen in fiction carry with them very real traumas when visited upon people in real life. Through one woman’s gut-wrenching story, Thau considers questions of ethics, justice, trust, and the resiliency of what we owe to the people we love, even in times of death and loss.

More than just a blend of national soul-searching and in-depth interview show, Carvel Wallace’s new series is a genuine search of the soul. “I have to talk about this, but I can’t” becomes a refrain of sorts for the entire series, but Wallace entreats a wide ranging group of guests to help wrestle with the contradictions of modern American life. Part memoir, part search for answers, (the episode where Wallace returns to his hometown is a stellar companion piece to this opening), it’s one of many shows this year that took stock of the way that personal and national fates have collided and how those left adrift keep looking for an anchor.

Jon Ronson’s seven-part saga through the aftermath of the advent of free online pornography takes him to some truly remarkable places. Yes, some of those are closed sets in the San Fernando Valley, but the real insight and true power of the reporting in “The Butterfly Effect” comes when Ronson follows the story out across its multiple connections. Heartbreaking, insightful, and done without judgment or shame, this particular chapter on a pastor in Louisiana speaks to the ever-changing web of intimacy and privacy that’s come from a world where anything is available on demand. In a year when reality felt more elusive than ever, Ronson’s series speaks deepest to the ones we try to create ourselves.

Later episodes would richly paint a portrait of an Alabama town wrestling with the legacy of one of its citizens. But what helped make “S-Town” the remarkable achievement that it is can all be found right here in the beginning. A willingness to listen to one man’s story, wherever it may lead, without pretense or judgment, is the hallmark of the kind of storytelling in whose footsteps Brian Reed and his team follows. An ability to mirror an audience’s wide-eyed, uncertain reaction to one man’s skeptical claims is a jolt of sincerity in the midst of a project that could have easily been drenched in cynicism and doubt. The devastation and reconciliation would come later, but it’s in this opening that S-Town truly become something special.

An early-year episode with the power to linger far beyond the confines of a calendar, this story of one man’s experiences as part of a doomed climbing expedition is as powerful a personal recollection as 2017 offered. It speaks to the vulnerability and specificity that podcasts can offer, an intimate relationship between speaker and listener that can open up a gateway to an experience that would be impossible to comprehend otherwise. You can hear the apprehension at some points, but the ultimate state of acceptance is also there. This is a recounting of a transformational experience, all the way up through the recognition in the moment and in hindsight that nothing will be quite the same. There’s immense power in stories like this, especially when presented in such a raw, unadorned way.